Ironing machine



ug. 17, 1954 R. Y. c AsE 2,686,377

IRONING MACHINE Filed May 17, 1952 .......H ....nn

INVENTOR. /7/6/745@ X C'E lwnzmmlum ATTORNEY Patented Aug. 17, l 1954 UNTED STATES ENT OFFICE'.

IRONING MACHINE Application May 17, 1952, Serial No. 288,457

4 claims. 1

This invention relates to a power driven ironing machine suitable for home use, and more particularly to an endless ironing apron for such machine.

There are now in use in many homes ironing machines having a power driven cylindrical roll that is covered with padding material and a covering cloth, and have cooperating therewith a curved heated ironing shoe. The work to be ironed on this type of machine, such as clothing, linens and other textile articles are fed to the machine at a point near the top of the horizontal ironing roll to travel downwardly in a curved path between the roll and curved ironing shoe.

it has been suggested heretofore that a more satisfactory type of ironing machine could be constructed by employing a power driven ironing apron or belt, in place of the covered ironing roll just mentioned, and operate such ironing apron so that the work to be ironed would be placed on an upper horizontal run of the apron to be carried by this run under an ironing shoe.

Much difficulty has been experienced heretofore in providing this type of ironer with a satisfactory ironing apron, and particularly in developing mechanism for driving the apron so that slippage does not occur between the apron andthe driving means for the same. This driving diculty is due to the fact that when an ironing shoe rests upon the upper horizontal run of the apron, or upon the work advanced by the apron, considerable friction results between the shoe and apron which makes the apron hard to drive. If it is attempted to increase the tension upon the apron so as to prevent slippage between the same and the supporting rolls or drums about which the apron travels, then this high tension tends to stretch and damage the apron, and to wear out the bearings that support such-drums.

It has also been suggested heretofore to provide power driven side chains to which an ironing apron is attached, but these side chains are a hazard to the person operating the ironer and are otherwise objectionable.

Having in mind the foregoing, the present invention contemplates an ironing machine having a wide ironing apron supported by space drums or rolls so that it has' an upper run and a lower run, and an ironing shoe positioned to engage the upper run or work resting thereupon. Means such as a small electric motor is employed to drive one of these drums, or if desired both drums, and in order to prevent slippage between the power driven drum and ironing apron, the apron is reinforced adjacent its inner face thereof so that it will not stretch in use. This reinforced portion of the apron has secured thereto at'the inner face of the apron transversely extending rubber teeth, adapted to cooperate with gear slots formed in the driving drum to thereby positively drive the apron, without the necessity of subjecting the apron to injuriously high tension. The reinforcedA portion of this apron preferably has secured thereto a thick cushioningv layer of rubber, and to the outer face of such cushioning rubberlayer is secured a textile cover that forms the ironing surface of the conveyor apron. An apron constructed as just described operates in a highly satisfactory manner, and it is easy for the operator ofthe machine to lay the work to be ironedA on its upper surface to be advanced by the driven apron under the heated ironing shoe. If desired, the drive for the drum may be reversed to advance the work being ironed back and forth under the shoe to `further press and iron the same.. When the work is ironed it will drop off of the discharge end of the ironing apron.

The above and other features of the present invention will be further understood from the following description when read in connection with the accompanying drawing; wherein Fig. 1 is a perspective view with parts in section of the essential features of an ironing inachine constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a short length of the ironing apron showing the same as it appears when it is removed from the mold upon which it is vulcanized;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinai sectional view of a short length of the apron shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on the line "4 of Fig. 3 showing the apron in engagement with a supporting drum; and

Fig. 5 is an end view showing a part of a slotted driving drum and apron cooperating therewith.

Now referring to Fig. 1 of. the drawing wherein there are shown the principal parts of an ironing machine constructed in accordance with the present invention, the supporting frame being omitted. In this view there is shown a widey endless ironing apron l which passes. around the spaced drums or rolls. li. and. l2, and in the construction shown the drum Il has a smooth surface whereas the drum l2, .which is the driven drum, has the gear slots shown. These drums support the ap-ron mso that it has any upper run anda lower run, and theupper run slides upon a supporting plate I3'. Positioned to cooperate with the upper run of the apron is the ironing shoe I4 which is supported by means, not shown, so that it may be raised and lowered relatively to the upper run of the apron, and is adapted to rest thereupon or upon work placed upon such apron to iron the work. The shoe I4 may be heated electrically or otherwise to a desired or controlled temperature, and the slotted drum I2 is keyed to a supporting shaft I5, which shaft is driven by a motor, not shown. The other drum II may rotate freely on its supporting shaft I6.

The apron I is preferably built up on a tubular forming die, not shown, but the exterior surface of which is shaped to mold the teeth at the inner face of the tubular apron as shown in Fig. 2. The apron I0 is preferably relatively wide, say over two feet wide, so that large articles of cloth- Ving or linen may lay flat on the same. The apron is so constructed that it is flexible and can readily be distorted from the tubular shape shown in Fig. 2 to the shape shown in Fig. 1 where it passes around the spaced drums II and I2 and provides an upper run and lower run.

En constructing the apron I0 it is important that it be strongly reinforced adjacent its inner surface with reinforcing strands which will not stretch appreciably throughout the useful life of the apron, and it is also important that the transversely extending rubber teeth lie close to this reinforcing layer, so that these teeth will cooperate properly with the gear slots I8 formed in the outer surface of the power driven drum I2. The apron Ill preferably has the exposed surface of the teeth Il covered with a protecting fabric I9 such as thin woven material.

In order to build the apron contemplated by the present invention a cylindrical molding form of the desired size and length is provided, and the same may be formed of metal or moldable non-metallic material which will not be injured by the vulcanizing temperature. The cylindrical form should have gear slots formed lengthwise thereof of a shape and size to mold the teeth I'I. The first step in building the apron of the present invention is to wind the textile fabric I9 about the molding form, and this fabric should be sufficiently slack to permit it to be forced into the various gear slots of the form. Then these slots are filled with rubber to provide the solid rubber teeth I'I. Next there is wound about the molding form a reinforcing strand or strands, such as strong textile cord which has previously been subjected to a stretching operation, so that it has very little residue stretch. A suitable cotton cord for this purpose is described in the Hansen et al. Patent No. 2,398,787. This strand should be wound around the form to provide a reinforcing layer of the textile strands or cord 2D laid side by side lengthwise of the apron as best shown in 4. Over this layer of reinforcing strands 20 is placed a relatively thick layer 2I of foam or sponge rubber, and over this sponge rubber is laid a textile cover 22. The textile cover 22 should have a rough soft surface upon which the material to be ironed will not slip, and a woven cotton fabric having terry loops upon its exposed or outer face is found to work well. This cover 22 is preferably woven as a tube of a size to fit the sponge cover 2|.

After the apron forming parts above described have been placed upon the molding form, the assembly is subjected to a Vulcanizing temperature to cure the rubber and bond the parts rmly together. The vulcanized apron is then stripped off of the form by firmly holding the apron while the form is pushed out of the same, whereupon the apron will have the cylindrical appearance shown in Fig. 2. This apron is sufiiciently flexible, however, to travel around the spaced drums II and I2 as shown in Fig. l, and one of these drums can be moved toward the other to facilitate the engagement of the apron therewith. To prevent the apron from working lengthwise on the drums, one drum such as I2 may have an end flange such as indicated by 23, rigidly secured to each end thereof.

The strengthening layer formed of the cords 20 should be positioned closely to the inner surface of the apron, as above stated, so that it will lie close to the outer surface of the drums II and I2, to thereby provide a non-stretching layer to which the rubber teeth I'I are directly secured. This non-stretching support for the teeth Il causes them to mesh properly with the gear slots or teeth-receiving slots in the surface of the drum I2 and provides the desired non-slip drive between the power driven drum I2 and apron I3.

As a result of the construction of the present invention the apron I is positively driven without the need of stretching the same to an injurious high degree about the spaced drums I I and I2, and the cushion surface 2I makes a yielding support for the work being ironed. Also the work to be ironed can be easily laid on the ad vancing run of the apron I0.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

l. An ironing machine, comprising a wide ironing apron having an upper and lower run, spaced drums about which the apron travels, an ironing shoe positioned to engage the upper run, means for driving one of the drums; said apron having a strengthening layer at its inner face formed of many strands of windings extending lengthwise of the apron, long molded teeth extending transversely of the apron at its inner face, a thick cushioning layer of plastic material bonded to the outer face of such strands, a textile cover forming an ironing surface bonded to the cushioning layer, and the driven drum having gear slots formed in its surface to receive the molded teeth and positively drive the apron.

2. An ironing machine, comprising a wide ironing apron having an upper and lower run, spaced drums about which the apron travels, an ironing shoe positioned to engage the upper run, means for driving one of the drums; said apron having a strengthening layer at its inner face formed of straight parallel cords extending lengthwise of the apron, long rubber teeth extending transversely of the apron at its inner face, a thick cushioning layer of rubber bonded to the outer face of such cords, a textile cover forming an ironing surface bonded to the cushioning layer, and the driven drum having gear slots formed in its surface to receive the rubber teeth and positively drive the apron.

3. An ironing machine, comprising a wide ironing apron having an upper and lower run, spaced drums about which the apron travels, an ironing shoe positioned to engage the upper run, means for driving one of the drums; said apron having a strengthening layer at its inner face formed of many strands of windings extending lengthwise of the apron, long rubber teeth extending transversely of the apron at its inner face, a thick cushioning layer of cellular rubber bonded to the outer face of such strands, an endless textile cover having a looped terry outer face bonded to the cushioning layer, and the driven drum having gear slots formed in its surface to receive the rubber teeth and positively drive the apron.

4. An ironing machine, comprising a Wide ironing apron having an upper and lower run, spaced drums about which the apron travels, an ironing shoe positioned to engage the upper run, means for driving one of the drums; said apron having a strengthening layer formed of a single layer of straight parallel strands extending l0 lengthwise of the apron adjacent its inner face, rubber teeth extending transversely of the apron and bonded to said strands, a thick cushioning layer of rubber bonded to the outer face of such 5 drive the apron.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,379,788 Clark July 3, 1945 2,397,312 Forrest Mar. 26, 1946 2,430,500 Freelander et al. Nov. 11, 1947 

